Generally, companion animals such as canines and felines weighing more than 15% of their ideal body weight are considered overweight or obese. Overweight animals generally have an excess of body adipose tissue. The most common cause of an animal being overweight is an over consumption of food that results in an excess intake of calories. However, there are other factors that can increase an animal's chances for being overweight, e.g., lifestyle, health, eating habits, breed, spaying, and neutering. Also, the incidence of animals becoming overweight generally increases with age due to a general decrease in metabolic rate and in physical activity. Surveys estimate that 25% of canines in the United States that visit veterinary clinics are fat to the point of being obese. Studies have shown that fat animals are significantly more at risk for diseases such as arthritis, heart disease, respiratory disease, diabetes, bladder cancer, hypothyroidism, and pancreatitis.
Losing weight or maintaining weight, particularly for a companion animal, is difficult. It is necessary to modulate the caloric intake of the animal. Modulating the amount of adipose tissue on a companion animal, including preventing an animal from becoming overweight or treating a fat animal to reduce the amount of adipose tissue on the animal, is also difficult. An effective way to prevent an animal from becoming fat or to reduce the amount of fat on an animal is with dietary restriction and exercise. However, it is often difficult to ensure compliance with diet and exercise programs.
Given the problems with current methods for dealing with the prevention or treatment of obesity in companion animals such as canines and felines, there is a continuing need for new methods and compositions useful for treating and preventing weight conditions such as obesity and, in particular, for food compositions effective in preventing and treating these conditions.